The Con
by katlynncore
Summary: It's weird, you know, walking in someone else's shoes. And I don't mean that figuratively. I mean suddenly not having your friends, your reputation, your life. Everything changed in one night. You go to sleep as one person and wake up as another.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

**Disclaimer: This is a work of my own fiction. The only thing that belongs to me is my OCs and the plot.**

It's weird, you know, walking in someone else's shoes. And I don't mean that figuratively. I mean suddenly not having your friends, your reputation, your life. Everything changed in one night. You go to sleep as one person and wake up as another.

I guess I should mention that I'm not talking about body switching. It's more like…life switching. Like an alternate universe, where everything you've ever known is different.

My life used to be, well, not perfect, but I had no complaints. I had the best friends that anyone could have. I mean, really, _the_best. All my hard work had paid off and I was finally Head Girl. Even if I had to hold the position alongside James Potter, that was just fine with me. At least he stopped asking me out and actually grew up for once. I was really looking forward to my seventh year at Hogwarts.

That was before I received the shock of my life.

I woke slowly. I felt very sluggish, the will to move was hard to find. When I opened the bed curtains, my first thought was that someone placed my bed on the opposite side of the room while I was asleep. This was not the case. As I looked around more, I realized that this was not even my dorm. The girls asleep in the other beds were not my friends. I recognized a few of the faces that I saw, but what I was seeing couldn't be right because they were Hufflepuffs.

I screwed my eyes shut, thinking that I wasn't fully awake yet but opened them again to find that I was still in the same room. How did I get here? Did I sleepwalk? It was a possibility; as Head Girl, I did have the passwords to all of the Houses.  
>But if I did sleepwalk, then where was the person whose bed I woke up in?<p>

"Good morning, Lily." I jumped at the voice. "Did you sleep well?"

"Not—not too well actually," I finally stammered to Abby McKellen. She was sitting up in her bed, brushing through her long blonde hair. "I'm not quite sure how I got here."

"What do you mean?"

I gave her a confused look. "Here. In this dorm."

"I still don't understand. Do you not remember last night or something?"

"I don't know. I remember going to bed in my own room, but I woke up here."

Abby paused her brushing and scrutinized my face. "Are you all right, Lily?"

"No, that's what I'm telling you. I don't know what I'm doing here and I don't understand how you can be so calm about it."

"As far as I can tell, you were sleeping in your bed and now you're shouting and acting a bit mad, if I do say so myself," she sniffed. "I was just trying to be polite, you know. It's not as if I'm your friend or anything." With that she huffed and went into the bathroom.

I quickly got dressed and gathered all of my things—all of my stuff was here too?—and walked quickly to the Great Hall. I made a beeline to where I saw Marlene and Helen sitting.

"You have no idea the kind of morning I've had so far," I said, dropping to the seat across from them. "I don't know what's happened, but I may have blacked out or something last night because…" I trailed off. They were both exchanging glances with each other and looking at me strangely. "What's the matter with you two?"

"I don't mean to be rude," Marlene started. "But we're just wondering what you're doing here?"

"What do you mean?"

They exchanged another glance before Helen answered. "You do realize this is the Gryffindor table, right?"

"Yes," I responded, slowly. "I know that."

"Right. And you're a Hufflepuff."

I laughed. "No, I'm a Gryffindor." I had to do a double take at my uniform. "I guess I was in such a rush this morning that I didn't realize I put on the wrong uniform."

Marlene looked uncomfortable. "Lily, are you okay? I mean you're not drunk or something, right?"

"Drunk," I inquired in outrage. "What are you on about?"

"Well," she said, while looking even more uncomfortable. "You come over here blathering about blacking out and acting as if, well, as if we were friends."

"But we _are_friends, all three of us, and we have been since first year!"

Now they both looked really worried, but before they could say anything more, someone behind me asked, "What's going on?"

The voice belonged to Gabby Maddox. She was standing there with a concerned look on her face. Marlene and Helen began to answer her, but I didn't hear any of it. I was staring at the Gryffindor robes that Gabby was wearing. Actually my attention was on the shiny Head Girl badge attached to it. What the bloody hell was going on here? _She_ was the Hufflepuff and _I_ was the Gryffindor and that was _my_badge, not the other way around!

That's the moment I realized just how wrong everything was. This was way bigger than I had previously thought.

I interrupted whatever they were saying. "I'm sorry. I'm not feeling like myself today." I mechanically rose from my seat and sat down in a random seat at the Hufflepuff table, and watched as the three girls interacted like they were the best of friends. I didn't understand any of this. It was all switched around, like Gabby and I had swapped places.

But how could that be? What could cause that to happen? Was I in some sort of parallel universe?

I was ripped from my reverie in a panicked moment as everyone began to head out of the Great Hall to their classes. If I wasn't who I normally am, then what classes was I supposed to go to? I frantically searched through my bag for a schedule, but came up empty. Then a thought occurred to me. If Gabby was in my role, then I would be in hers. She was in my first two classes, Charms and Muggle Studies. After that, I guessed that I would have to go back to the Hufflepuff—I mean _my_— dorm and search for the blasted schedule.

Professor Flitwick tottered into the room greeting us and asking us to get settled. I looked over at where I usually sat and found Gabby, Marlene, and Helen there. The entrance of the Marauders caught my eyes. That was it! If anyone was to remember who I really am, it was bound to be Potter.

All of my hopes were dashed, however, as he sat down right next to Gabby and gave her a peck on the cheek. My eyes widened. The little chit has stolen my stalker too? Oh, this had to be fixed.

Flitwick called the class to order. He went over what was assigned for homework the night before, which I, of course, practiced before everything went topsy turvy. I was first to raise my hand when he asked for a student demonstration.

"Ah, yes, Miss Maddox. Will you please show us all the proper way to cast this charm?"

I watched in horror as she did it to perfection. In fact, I had the displeasure of having Flitwick completely ignore me in favor of Gabby. Every. Single. Time. That was the last straw. Not only did she steal my friends, my Head Girl position, my stalker, my _life_, she now had all of my answers in class. I did not care what kind of hell I had to go through, I would be me again. And soon, because it had just turned serious.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me, except the plot and my O.C.'s.**

I watched Gabby through narrowed eyes throughout all of Muggle Studies. She studiously took notes the whole time, never diverting her attention away from the lecture. To anyone else, I'm sure she looked like she was just the responsible Head Girl listening to the lecture. What a liar.

My gut feeling was that she was the reason I woke up as the wrong person that morning. So far everyone seemed to be in their rightful place (besides the two of us, of course). This was why I was watching her. She was bound to slip up. She may have everyone under her thumb, but she wouldn't con me.

After class I went up to my room and tore it apart, looking for my schedule. I finally found it, under the mattress of all places, and headed off to Transfiguration. I was a little late and received a glare from McGonegall. The boy I sat next to ignored me completely.

I continued to think about this whole alternate universe dilemma. I figured the best way to solve it would be to find my answers in the library. There were a lot of books to go through, so I was anxious for my classes to be done.

The rest of the day turned out to be quite boring. I did not see Gabby or any of my friends until supper, and that was from one table over. I was starting to get the feeling that the Lily Evans of this universe was a bit of a loner. Nobody attempted to start a conversation with me the whole day. It wasn't as if I was hated by any of them because everyone that did happen to speak to me was perfectly polite. It was more like they couldn't help but ignore me. Like I was invisible.

After supper I filed out of the Hall with the rest of the Hufflepuffs, but I silently slipped away towards the direction of the library. Thankfully, I didn't encounter anyone along the way. My success ran short when I met up with Madame Pince.

I politely told her that I was there to do research for class and that it was important that I get started tonight. I asked if she would allow me to stay past the library closing hours because I knew that it would only be open for a few more minutes. As more words came out of my mouth, the librarian's mouth shrank smaller and smaller until there was just a set of very pursed lips on her face. A decided no.

She informed me tersely that I was welcome to researching in the library, but I would have to come back the next day. I translated this to: Madame Pince no longer trusted me around her books. I have, on countless times, stayed in the library late into the night with her permission.

It _had_ been a long day, so I decided to hit the books the next morning. Thank Merlin it would be Saturday.

I woke early and ate breakfast faster than I had ever done before. I was eager to begin my research. I began in the Reference Section of the library. I was up to my ears in curse and counter-curse books. I went through books about binding spells, switching spells, transporting spells, you name it, I read it, all to no avail. Not one of them mentioned anything that sounded remotely like the situation I was in.

By supper, when my stomach began to make some really angry sounds, I decided that the book I was looking for had to have been in the Restricted Section. I would need to tackle that when I wasn't so hungry.

I sat through supper, now full out glaring at Gabby. Bloody twit. She must have covered her tracks nicely. Here I was, Lily Evans, Forgotten Hufflepuff, sitting alone (well, not _alone_ alone, since there were others sitting around me) and she was at my table, with my friends, laughing at things I should have been laughing at.

I just _had_ to get into that Restricted Section as soon as possible. I could do it after curfew, but by somehow sneaking in without being seen. I wasn't very good at sneaking. I had never had a need to before, so this was bound to be interesting.

I decided that ten o'clock was as good a time as any. Madame Pince should have cleared out of the library by then. I could tip-toe quietly out of the Common Room, unnoticed, since there was bound to be tons of people hanging around. It was Saturday after all and nobody would miss me.

I silently made my way to the library. I had to dodge a few prefects on patrol along the way, but made it nonetheless. I took about three steps into the library before I caught a glimpse of Madame Pince working at her desk. She had the desk lamp on and was bent over some book, reading. Damn it.

My footsteps were quiet as I backed out of the room. I let out a sigh of frustration after quietly closing the doors again. It felt like my luck had steadily turned rotten since Friday morning. Of course, it was just as I was thinking this that a voice sounded behind me.

"Oi, what are you doing out past curfew?"

I whirled around to find James Potter standing in front of me. He looked so…so _in charge_ that it took me off guard for a moment. "James. I-I was just leaving the library."

"Are you okay?" His voice sounded concerned.

"Yes, why?"

"You look like you're about to cry. Are you sure you're okay?" To my absolute horror, tears began to fall down my cheeks. I tried to swipe them away discreetly, but it was no use. "Hey, what's the matter?"

That's when I really lost it. I began to babble to him about alternate universes and that I wasn't supposed to be a Hufflepuff and that I desperately needed to get into the library for answers. I wasn't sure if he understood any of what I was saying. My voice was distorted with emotion and I wasn't sure if what I was saying was exactly in English.

"Hey, hey." James gently grabbed my shoulders. "Slow down. Just tell me what happened."

"Never mind. You wouldn't understand."

"Try me. I can keep up."

I looked up at his earnest face. His eyes were kinder than I had ever seen them. Actually, I had never really seen this side of James. Which I guessed was technically my fault because I never really gave him a chance. But he was at fault too for being so damn annoying all the time.

"I'm not sure you'd believe me. It does sound kind of farfetched, even for Hogwarts." His expression didn't change, so I told him everything. He surprised me again by listening the entire time and didn't interrupt me once.

"So what you're saying," James began slowly. "Is that you somehow switched places with Gabby. You also think the answers are in the Restricted Section, but you need to get passed Madame Pince."

"Yes."

"Why didn't you just try a Disillusionment Charm?"

"I—huh." He smiled at my mystified expression. "Why _didn't_ I think of that? It's so obvious."

"You are a bit distraught at the moment."

"True. Anyway, thanks for your help. And for listening."

"No problem, but if we're going to do this it should be now. I have a feeling that someone might be coming along this path any time now to finish up their patrols."

"Wait, what do you me by 'we'?"

"I'm helping you, obviously."

I shook my head. "You don't have to do that, James. I don't even know how long this will take."

"Good thing I've always been a night person."

"James, I'm serious."

"Lily," he sighed. "I'm helping you. End of story."

Before I could protest anymore, he was invisible. I followed suit shortly after and we made our way into the library. Madame Pince looked up once, as if sensing that all was not silent within her library. I bumped into the back of him when he stopped under her piercing glance. After a few seconds, she turned her attention back to her work muttering something like, "…them bloody ghosts". I felt James grab for my hand and we hurried to the Restricted Section.

"Merlin," James said, laughing softly. We'd both become visible again, and I could make out the wide grin on his face. "I thought she saw us for sure."

"Me too. My heart's racing right now."

He looked up into the stacks. "Now, where to start?"

**Author's Note: I know this one isn't all that action packed, but I promise it'll get better. The next chapter has a lot of interaction between Lily and James. I'm really excited about this story and I hope you continue to read it! Reviews are greatly appreciated and never fail to make me smile (even the ones with some constructive criticism, which is always welcomed).**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**Disclaimer: I own none of this, except the plot and my O.C.'s. All else belongs to J.K. Rowling.**

I didn't know exactly what time it was, but it was definitely past midnight. The library was quieter than usual. The darkness seemed to make everything even more silent than the library usually was. That library scent that I loved so much clung to the air. It was a calming smell that all libraries had. Although, I did have to admit that libraries of the non-Muggle variety had a few hazards that could get annoying. James and I carefully read the books' spines to make sure none of them were going to scream unexpectedly or something when opened.

We no longer needed to whisper as Madame Pince had left about an hour before. We had books spread all around us on the ground and were reading them by wand light. He and I were laughing and joking as we researched. I was regaling James with pranks he had done and the various ways he'd embarrassed me throughout the years.

"I used to think that you were the single most arrogant person I'd ever met. It seemed like I was the only person who didn't worship the ground you walked on. That's probably why you asked me out so many times."

James looked startled. "Exactly how many times did I ask you out?"

"Merlin, I don't even know. You irritated me to no end. It got to the point in fourth year that I'd cringe whenever you would open your mouth."

He laughed. "That sounds like me. I never know when to shut up."

"No, you don't. And you always found the most inappropriate times to ask me too."

"For example…" James trailed off, looking amused. I could see his hazel eyes even through the glare on his glasses from our wands. His messy hair was the same as always, but I realized just then how well it suited him. He had his tie loosened and was sitting back against the bookshelves. That lopsided grin that I used to hate was on his face. I'd never noticed how attractive he could be before. It was at this moment that I finally understood why all of those other girls were so attracted to him. I was always caught up in how much of a git he was.

"For example, there was the time in fourth year that you hexed some Slytherins to sing a song in the Great Hall about going to Hogsmeade with you. They just marched right up to me, and belted it out in front of everyone during the lunch hour. Oh, and there was that time you made paper Valentines follow me around all day in fifth year, each asking me to go out with you. You can't even imagine the amount of times I've threatened to hex you."

"And yet, you still didn't, did you?" He had a smug expression on his face. It wasn't like he was the James Potter that did all of these things, so I didn't know why he had to look so satisfied with himself.

"No, but only because I knew that it was all just a joke to you."

"A joke?" James said with mock indignation. "What if I really did fancy you? Do you realize just how much rejection you've put me through?"

"Ha. Ha. Funny. I know that you didn't actually fancy me because I'm not that all that interesting. I'm actually quite dull. All I do is study and hang out with Marlene and Helen. I don't do crazy things or say anything interesting really. I'm just ordinary."

"No you're not. Why would you think that?"

"James, come on. You don't even really know me. The other James Potter, the one I know, only asks me out because he likes to get a rise out of me. I can't resist having a row with him. He's the only one who can get under my skin and he knows it."

James gave a small smile and slowly shook his head. "You don't really see yourself, do you?" When I gave him a confused look, he continued. "Lily, you're beautiful and smart and bloody attractive. The reason that I know the other me fancies you is because _I_ used to fancy you."

"What?" This was news to me.

"When we were younger, I had the biggest crush on you. There was a time that I was going to ask you to Hogsmeade, but lost my nerve. My mates all used to tease me about it. It was really annoying."

James Potter losing his nerve? This really was a backwards world. "Did I do something to scare you off?"

"No, it wasn't that." He took a second to think about his words. "You've just always been so…distant. You've never really had any friends, but it's always seemed like you preferred it that way."

"Huh. That must be why everyone seems to ignore me now."

He nodded. "I've noticed that. It never looked as if that bothered you. That people ignore you, I mean."

I looked down at the book in my lap and began reading it without really seeing the words. It was weird hearing this. In my normal life, I relied on Marlene and Helen so often. They were my support system that always kept me going, and vice versa. It was odd that Lily Evans the Hufflepuff not only didn't have that sort of friendship, but didn't need it either.

"That's why I decided to help you just outside the library earlier," James continued after a bit as if there were no lapse in the conversation. It seemed like he'd been debating whether or not to speak. "It was strange for me to see you looking so vulnerable."

"So, it wasn't because you believe my crazy story about alternate universes?" I bit my lip, disappointed. Even though I expected this, I'd hoped he had believed me. "How about now? We've been in this library researching for hours and I've told you of all these crazy things you've done."

"Uh, I think it's one of those things that I believe now, here with you. But once I'm back in my dorm I'll probably start to doubt it. Hey," He lifted my chin when I looked back down at the pages in front of me. "I'm sure if you give me time, I might change my mind."

"Might. That's what I'm afraid of. I don't want to be left alone to figure this all out by myself."

"Give me time," James repeated, softly. He still had his hand on my chin, so I couldn't help but stare back at him. We stayed like that for a moment, and for some insane reason I thought he was going to kiss me. My heart skipped a beat at the thought. Then James dropped his hand and cleared his throat.

"I think we should stop for tonight. We can do some more research tomorrow."

"Right, good idea. I'm exhausted." That would explain my lapse in sanity. I mean, seriously, James Potter _kissing_ me. Yeah. Right. It's not like I fancied him or anything. Sure, I may have started to like him just now, but only as a friend. That and I was having the absolute bloody worst couple of days in the history of mankind. That sort of thing tends to make a girl feel things she might otherwise not have. James was the only person that I had actually held a real conversation with since the switch. I was just trying to connect with him. Man is a social being and cannot be expected to not talk to anybody.

I continued to think about all of this even after James walked me to the Hufflepuff dormitories and left for the Gryffindor tower. After dressing for bed, I lied down and promptly fell asleep, all disturbing thoughts of James Potter and kissing left forgotten.

**Author's Note: What did I tell you? There was TONS of James in this chapter. When I had first written it, I absolutely hated everything about chapter three. To fix it, I took a couple of days and thought about possible outcomes. I got into a really good mood and the words just flowed. It was amazing. I had fun writing this chapter with all the dialogue and I hope you had fun reading it. I would like to thank NaidatheRavenclaw for her excellent betaing skills. Reviews would make me happy, even if you have some constructive criticism to give.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**Disclaimer: This a work of fiction based off of characters created by J.K. Rowling. I only own my O.C.'s and the plot of this lovely fanfic.**

When I woke up the next morning, the lighting looked all wrong. I knew why when I saw the clock hands read 12:03. Before then, I'd never slept in, and I certainly had never slept in past noon. I breathed a sigh of relief after realizing that it was only Sunday, and I could stop panicking about missing class.

When I finally made my way to the Great Hall, lunch was being served. The room was filled with the babble of conversation. I spotted James sitting with Gabby and sighed. I guessed that my story was a bit too unbelievable. He probably thought I was completely nutters by now. After spending all that time with him the previous night, I was not looking forward to researching on my own. I sat down at my (now) usual seat at the Hufflepuff table and began to pile up my plate. I didn't look up to see who had plopped down across from me until I heard James' voice.

"Good morning, love. Or should I say, good afternoon? Do you realize that it is, in fact, 12:30 in the afternoon?"

"What are you doing here?" I was so astonished, that it came out sounding ruder than I had intended.

"Well, well," he said, giving me his famous crooked grin. "I didn't know that you Hufflepuffs were such snobs."

"Good thing I'm not really a Hufflepuff."

James ignored that last comment. "What if I just wanted to sit with a friend? I mean, you do owe me since you did make me break all of those rules last night."

"Oh, are you afraid of violating some curfew rules—"

"Don't forget the breaking into the library after hours, as well," he interjected.

"—because the James Potter I know is quite the troublemaker. Actually the words prank and Potter have become synonymous with each other, the same way mischief and Marauder have. Speaking of which, where are those menacing friends of yours? Aren't you lot supposed to be inseparable?"

James gave me another grin before he craned his neck around until he met their eyes. He beckoned for them to sit with us, and while he was distracted, my own eyes flickered to the Gryffindor table to find Gabby. She was staring at James and me with a look mixed with confusion and jealousy. I wrestled with the urge to give her a haughty smile. Serves her right.

"Prongsie," Sirius began as he took his seat next to James, while Remus sat next to me. After a moment of hesitation, Peter sunk down on the seat next to Sirius. "May I inquire as to why you are sitting all the way over here? Not that I mind, of course," he added when he noticed Dahlia Parker's flirtatious glance and responded to it with a wink. Dahlia was one of those girls who was flighty and went bonkers anytime a bloke (particularly Sirius Black) paid any amount of attention to her. She squealed and started whispering excitedly with her friends.

James just rolled his eyes. "I just thought a change of pace might be nice. By the way, you all know Lily, right."

Sirius's eyes turned mocking. "Of course, seeing as she's only been going to Hogwarts with us since first year." He turned to me as he stacked his plate high with food. "You do know that he used fancy you, right? He was always going on about you; it just about drove us mad. I almost disowned him as my best mate when he lost the nerve to ask you out."

"Yes," I laughed while James gave Sirius a pained look. "He did mention that last night."

"Last night?" The smile that crossed Sirius's face couldn't be described as anything other than wolfish. "What were you doing together last night? Snogging in the broom closets with dear old Prongsie, were you?"

"No, no. Nothing like that. He just helped me—" I started before I saw James' eyes widen in warning. "Back to my dorm. I was out past curfew. We got to talking, and that was mentioned."

Remus looked at James and me in suspicion. He had apparently caught the look James had just thrown me. "Uh, huh. Is that why you didn't come back into the dorm until three in the morning, Prongs?"

Sirius' face lit up even brighter with amusement. "Now, why would you be lying to us? Come on, out with it. We're not going to tell the prude if that's what you're afraid of."

"The prude?" I asked. "Who's that?"

James sighed while Remus explained. "He is referring to Gabby. You did know that they were dating, right?"

Why was there a sudden stab in my chest just then? This wasn't a big surprise. I did see her kiss him last Friday during Charms. Besides this was James Potter, my stalker. Sensible girls did not fall for their stalkers. _You're still tired, is all. You have been through a lot in the past couple of days._

"I take it you don't like her very much?"

"We like her just fine," Remus explained. "It's just that she's…"

"She's positively _boring_, is what she is," Sirius finished for him, when Remus trailed off. "She never does _anything_. I swear the girl is perfect, and I don't mean that in a good way. I never really liked her, to be honest."

Peter spoke up for the first time since sitting down. "She's nice to me."

"That there proves my point. She's way too nice."

"Alright, alright." James' voice sounded tired as if he's heard this all before. "We get it; you don't like Gabby very much. Are you the one dating her?"

Sirius snorted. "Merlin, no."

"Then shut up."

"I only think that you could use some scandal in your life. You've been _so_ unexciting since you got that bloody Head Boy badge. I think Lily would be the perfect solution for you. A bit of a snog here and there never did any harm."

I had to speak up at that point. "I don't think that's going to happen, Sirius. I'm not interested in anything more than friendship with James."

He looked dismayed. "Ugh. What happened to this school? What happened to the Marauders? We used to be so much trouble. I think we may have lost our touch. Does anybody else agree with me?"

"I do," Peter said eagerly.

James shook his head at his best mate. "It's called maturity, Padfoot. Perhaps you should try it some time." Then, while Sirius continued to rant, James leaned forward and asked me quietly, "Remind me, why did I ask them to join us over here?"

I laughed quietly. "Because they're your best mates and you enjoy their company?"

"Merlin only knows why."

After lunch, and many attempts to dodge Sirius's questions about what we were doing together the previous night, James and I snuck off to the library. We were quiet for a bit along the way until I broke the silence. "So, have you decided whether you believe me or not yet?"

He gave me an unsure look. "I wouldn't say that I completely believe. Let's just say that I'm…intrigued."

I nodded. "Okay, I'll take that to be a good thing. So…you and Gabby…"

"Bollocks, not you too. I hear enough of it from my mates. I don't understand why nobody seems to like her. She's actually kind of fun to be around."

I raised an eyebrow. "She's 'kind of fun'? Huh."

"What?"

"Nothing."

He sighed in an exaggerated way. "Come on, Lily. Out with it."

"Fine, but don't get mad at me." I took a breath, stalling. "I think you should be with someone who's more than just 'kind of fun', James. You're a great guy, you know? You're funny and nice and caring and…you deserve more. Any girl would love to be with you." I wasn't sure where all of this was coming from or why I cared, but I felt really strongly about it. It was weird. The thought of James ending up with someone who didn't appreciate him seemed so wrong. "Besides, I'm not even sure you know her as well as you think."

James's brow creased. "What do you mean?"

"Don't you find it odd that Gabby and I are the only ones that are switched? That everything else is exactly how it was before?"

"Hold on a minute here. Are you saying that _Gabby_ did this?"

"Who else, James? You started dating her last Friday, right? And she was the one that asked you?"

"Yeah, so?"

"So, that's when this whole alternate universe mess began. She made sure to ask you afterwards. Gabby's the one that switched us, I'm almost positive."

He was shaking his head before I finished speaking. "Gabby's not like that. You heard Sirius at lunch. She really is sort of perfect. I can't see her doing something like that."

"Well then what else could have caused it? I mean, I've spent the last couple of days observing everything. I can tell you, it really is just her and me that switched and I certainly didn't do it."

"Maybe it was something else. I don't know. I just know that it couldn't have been her. Besides, I'm not even sure that I really believe you yet."

My heart sunk at his last statement. "James, I'm not making this up. I promise. Surely, deep down, you have to feel that something is wrong here. This isn't the way it's supposed to be."

"I don't know, Lily." His face was unsure. We were stopped in the middle of the empty corridor. James was staring at my face as if deciding whether or not to believe me. There was a tiny glimmer in his eyes that told me to not give up. The seeds of doubt were beginning to blossom. "Can we drop this for now? I really just need time."

I nodded and we continued on our way to the library. As long as he was helping me, I knew that I had a chance to change his mind. Gabby may have seemed perfect to him then, but she would mess up sometime. She couldn't be that good of an actress. I would just have to wait until she did, then I could use that to get my life back. Somehow.

**Author's Note: This was another chapter that I had a lot of fun with the dialogue. I loved writing about Sirius. His words just flowed from my fingers without any effort. I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. I'm excited for the next one, which may turn out to be pretty long. Tell me what you think!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

**Disclaimer: I am not J.K. Rowling, but I am basing my fan fiction off of her beautiful work and I am using her lovely characters to tell the story.**

James and I did a lot of reading that continued until supper. We took up a whole table meant for six people. We didn't really talk much. At first, I think it was because he was a little annoyed at the accusations I made about Gabby, but the tension seemed to dissipate after a while. The silence between us eventually became comfortable and I couldn't help but sneak peeks at James.

I was intrigued by the studious side of him. The smile that crept on my face couldn't be helped. The concentrated expression on his face was so endearing. His forehead was wrinkled in concentration while his hazel eyes scanned the pages. I realized that I'd missed a lot of the different sides of him throughout the years. I'd never took the time to get to know him really. He wasn't the bothersome toerag that I'd made him out to be. I suddenly realized just how happy I was to have the chance to get to know him better, and that I really wanted to continue to be around him even after everything switched back to normal. How odd.

"I don't know about you, but I'm starved," James announced.

"I'm pretty hungry myself." We gathered the books, put them back in their proper places and headed to the Great Hall. "I'm beginning to get the sinking feeling that we won't find the answers in any book in the library. I don't know where else to look."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. There's a million places we could look for answers, but the castle's so damn big, I wouldn't know where to start."

I groaned. "I know that someone _has_ to have written about this sort of thing at some point. Surely I'm not the only one who's had this problem before. I bet it's hidden somewhere less obvious." _Some place where Gabby made sure it would not be easily found_, I added mentally.

James stopped in the middle of the corridor and had a profound look on his face. He gave a short laugh and said, "I just realized that I know exactly where to look."

"Where?"

"Have you ever heard of the Room of Requirement?"

"No. What's that?"

A wide grin spread over his face. "It's the answer to your problem, I'm sure of it. I'll have to show you later tonight. I'll come get you later on tonight a bit after curfew. Meet me outside the kitchens."

After supper, I walked back to the Common Room with the rest of the Hufflepuffs. I stayed up in my room and tidied things up a bit, waiting impatiently. A few of my roommates came in, but they ignored me and went to bed. Typical. I continued to clean quietly. When my part of the room was spotless, I turned to looking over my schedule for the next day and was shocked to find that I would be having Potions when I normally did. I hadn't known that Gabby was in my Potions class before.

I guessed that it was a possibility that I hadn't noticed her. Potions had always been my best subject and, consequently, the one I didn't usually socialize in. Typically, I was more caught up in the assignments given than who was in the class with me. It would be interesting to see what happened the next day with Gabby. If she took over that class like she did in Charms earlier, I wasn't sure if I would be able to resist hexing her. I mean, I was sneaking around after hours now, why not add a detention, too? It seemed as if I had suddenly become more of a rebellious version of myself in this twisted reality.

I kept looking at the clock, which, of course, seemed to be moving way slower than it usually did. I was excited to see what this Room of Requirement was like. I supposed it had many books in it; how else could it be helpful to me?

Finally, curfew came and it was time to leave. I ducked out of the common room, unnoticed, and made my way to the kitchen entrance to wait. After about five minutes, the feeling that I wasn't alone came over me. It was as if I could feel eyes watching me.

"Hello? Is anybody there?" My question was met with silence. I spoke again, but this time I could hear the apprehension in my voice. "Hello?"

Just then, James popped out of nowhere. "Boo." I screamed and he had to cover my mouth with his hand. He was laughing at me, the bloody wanker. "I'm sorry; I couldn't resist. It was too good of an opportunity."

"Are you mental? How the bloody hell did you do that," I asked when he dropped his hand.

"I have an invisibility cloak, of course." He pulled the cloak completely off of himself to show me. The fabric was shimmery and fascinating to look at.

My mouth dropped in astonishment and James smiled that crooked grin of his. "You have an invisibility cloak? Where did you get it?" I reached out to touch it. It felt even silkier than it looked.

He shrugged. "It's a family heirloom. My mates and I used to use it to get around after curfew."

"Wait a second," I said with a smile spreading onto my face. "Is this a famous Marauder secret?"

"Yup."

"Hmm. I kind of feel special that you're telling me."

"As you should," he laughed.

My smile vanished when a thought occurred to me. "We're going to use that now? Both of us?"

"What? Are you afraid to share a cloak with me, Evans? I thought we were friends." He said it in such a way, that it reminded me of the James I knew. It brought me back to all the times he challenged me throughout the years, which I could never seem to resist.

I raised my chin. "No, of course not. Let's do this."

He grinned again before throwing the cloak over both of us. We had to stand rather close as to not let our feet show. We were facing each other, with our chest pressed up against each other. My cheeks grew warm and I couldn't quite meet his eyes.

"I think you may have to turn around and lead the way. I don't know where we're going."

James cleared his throat. "Er, right."

Since we were so close, I could smell his skin. I couldn't lie to myself about how good his scent was. I didn't really pay attention to where we were going because I was battling the sudden butterflies in my stomach. My head was filled with thoughts that I'd never had about James before. Thankfully, he pulled the cloak off before I acted on anything I would most definitely regret.

When I looked around, I noticed that we were on the seventh floor. The portrait of Barnabas the Barmy was on the wall to the left of us and a blank wall to the right. "Is this where it is? I don't see anything."

"Lily, Lily, Lily." He shook his head in mock disapproval. "It's called magic. I'm not so sure that you're aware, but this is a school of witchcraft and wizardry."

"Yes, I'm aware, you prat. What do we have to do? Wave our wands about or something?"

James steered me to a spot in the middle of the corridor. "What I need you to do is, starting here, begin to pace a little ways down there," he pointed to a spot a few meters from where we stood, "and come back here. Do this three times while thinking about how much you need to find a hidden book."

I turned and looked at him. "Are you serious?"

"Yeah," James let out a bark of laughter. "Why?"

"This isn't some kind of prank to make me look like a loon or anything?"

His laughter became louder. "No. Trust me, this will work."

"Okay, but remember: I have no compunctions about hexing you if this is a joke."

James held his hands up in surrender. His smile was contagious even though I tried to squelch mine from showing. "I swear to you, on my honor, that this is not a joke."

"Okay, I believe you." I did as he said and looked at the wall opposite of the tapestry. Where there was a blank wall before, now sat a door. "Whoa."

"May I present to you, the Room of Requirement." James held open the door for me, and I walked into an impossibly large room.

"Whoa," I breathed, again. "How did you find this?"

"Padfoot and I were smuggling some things from Hogsmeade in fifth year and needed a place to hide them. Filch was on our tail, and we just happened on this room. A bit of pure luck. Amazing, right?"

"I don't think that amazing is strong enough." There were all items imaginable stacked up in haphazard piles. I saw cages, robes, candles, bowls, jewelry, wigs, statues, and that was only at the entranceway.

"The only problem is," James said with a bit of a wince on his face. "I wouldn't know how to find exactly what you're looking for.'

I gave him a confident smirk. "Well, that's easy. As you said," I tried to imitate James's voice. "'This is a school of witchcraft and wizardry.' _Accio…book-about-alternate-universes_?" It came out as more of a question than an actual conjuring spell.

When nothing happened it was James who smirked. "That doesn't work in here. Actually, I'm not sure that would even work anywhere. '_Accio book-about-alternate-universes_'? Really?"

I ignored that last part, aside from an annoyed look. "Why won't it work here?"

"I don't know. It just doesn't."

"Great. So we're going to doing this the old fashioned way?"

"I'm afraid so."

I sighed and cheered in a weak voice, "Yay to more research."

**Author's Note: I'm so sorry about the wait. After the holidays, I had tons of school and work. I just didn't have any time. I know I promised in my last chapter that this one would be long, but I promise the next one will be long. Altogether Chapter Five and Chapter Six started to grow to more than eight pages, so I had to separate them since I had so much more to write. I know there wasn't much action in this one, but he next is going to have drama galore, I promise. I'd still love to hear what you think, so reviews are welcomed!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

**Disclaimer: All of the genius of Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling. I am merely inspired by her fantastic work.**

I woke the next morning very uncomfortable and very cold. I opened my eyes to find that I was not in a bed, but on a dusty smelling couch. I heard a snore coming from the floor next to me. James was sleeping with a book spread opened on his chest and a lumpy looking pillow under his head.

I looked around and realized where we were. "Bloody hell! James, what time is it?"

He jolted awake. His glasses were askew on his face and he tried to clumsily fix them. "What? What's the matter?"

"We fell asleep in the Room of Requirement."

"Shite. What time is it?"

"I don't know. That's what I was asking you. What if we missed class?"

We stood up and straightened out our clothes before peeking out the door. The corridor was clear, so we quietly made our way through the castle. The sun had not risen yet, so I knew we could safely make it back to our dorms without much notice.

James and I stood in awkward silence when we had to go our separate ways. "I hope my mates didn't notice I was gone. I'll never hear the end of it."

I laughed. "Yeah, definitely. So, er, thanks for all your help last night. And for, you know, all of those other times before."

He shrugged like it wasn't a big deal. "It's been kind of fun. I'll see you in Potions, then?"

"Yeah, I guess you will." I was suddenly excited at the prospect of seeing him again.

We separated and I couldn't help the smile on my face. That seemed to happen a lot around him these days.

When I got back to my dorm, nobody was awake yet and I was careful not to rouse any of the other girls from their slumber. The clock was just about to strike six in the morning, so I decided to get ready for my day and head down for an early breakfast.

As I ate, I thought of the past few nights that I'd spent with James and how comfortable I felt around him now. I couldn't deny my attraction to him anymore. Had he really been like this all along? Was I just now realizing how amazing he truly was? I couldn't help but feel like I was the prat all along.

It was a while before I noticed that the tables were full with others eating breakfast. I looked around to the Gryffindor table to find James. He was sitting with the Marauders and, to my great dismay, Gabby and my friends.

A feeling of loneliness overtook me as I watched Gabby interact with Marlene and Helen. I missed them very much. I wished I could talk to them about my changing feelings for James. They always knew the right thing to say. I missed our late night chats, where we would talk about whatever came to mind for hours. I craved to know what was going on in their lives since the last time I'd talked to them.

As if sensing my distress, James's eye caught mine. He gave me a smile that made my insides feel weird, sort of light and fluttery. I smiled back after he nodded discreetly and casted a look over at the Marauders. I knew what message he was trying to convey: his mates hadn't realized he was gone all last night.

I collected my things and made my way towards the Potions room early. The butterflies in my stomach intensified as I thought of the upcoming class. Not only was I nervous about seeing James again, but Gabby, too. Was she going to dominate this class, as well? This was my best subject and there was no way I was going to let her overshadow me.

Slowly, the room started to fill up as my fellow classmates began to arrive. I had chosen a table in the middle section of the room, but off to the right side. No one sat next to me at my table, but James and Sirius chose the table beside mine. I gave both a greeting smile, but it disappeared as soon as Gabby and Helen sat down at the table in front of James and Sirius.

Sirius rolled his eyes as Gabby turned around to whisper something to James. He turned to me and slowly shook his head with a mock serious expression, eliciting a laugh from me. Gabby gave me an icy glare for a second or two then turned back to face forward. I widened my eyes at Sirius as if to ask, "What did I do?" which made us both laugh. James looked between us with an amused, questioning glance.

Before James could voice his confusion, Slughorn entered the room. He proclaimed that today's potion was going to be Draught of the Living Death. "I know that we've done it before, but it's such a difficult potion, that I thought a review would benefit you all greatly."

I smiled as I opened my book to the correct page, especially after glancing over at Gabby's slumped shoulders. Back in fourth and fifth year, I used to spend many a free period with my former best mate, Severus Snape, practicing the most challenging potions we could find. Sev had actually been a hair better than me at Potions. He had modified the instructions given by the text with better results and I had paid attention. This was going to be easy.

My potion had just turned a lovely shade of lilac, when I heard Sirius's exasperated sigh. "Bloody hell, Prongs. You're a nightmare. How did you even get to the N.E.W.T. level anyway?"

James gave him a cheeky smile. "My charming good looks and debonair ways."

"You're an absolute prat, you know that?"

After stirring my potions seven times counter-clockwise (and once more in the opposite direction, per Sev's modification), my potion turned clear and I began to bottle it.

"Evans," Sirius called me over as I finished corking my vile. "Since you're done, and you _obviously_ know what you're doing," he gave James a pointed look, "would you mind helping this sorry excuse for a partner of mine do something correctly for once?"

I smirked and joined their table. Their potion was still very dark in color. James had a knife in his hand, attempting to slice the sopophorous bean. He was going about it all wrong, and the bean kept flinging from his grasp to the floor. "Well, if this sodding bean wasn't so damn slippery…"

"James, you're doing it all wrong." I picked up the bean from the floor and placed it back on the table.

"I think I know how to use a knife, thank you very much."

"And I think I know how to make the potion better than you do, thank you very much."

Sirius let out a surprised hoot and said, "She's got you there, Prongs. I think you should show him, Evans. No," he said as I took the knife from James's hand. "You need to physically show him how to do it. Otherwise he'll just pretend like he's listening. Potions, as I'm sure you've gathered, is not his best subject. He tends to get a little hazy and unfocused during demonstrations."

I caught a glint in Sirius's eyes and narrowed mine at him. He was up to something, but I wasn't quite sure what. I gave James back the knife and moved to stand beside him. I hesitated before taking his hand in mine. I gulped when I felt the roughness of it, probably from all of the Quidditch he played. His hand was warm and touching his skin sent tingles up my arm. "Okay, grab the bean with your other hand. Now, what you're going to do is crush it with the dull side, like this," I turned the knife in his hand. "That way you'll get more juice from the bean."

James looked over at me, our noses almost touching. The fluttery feeling in my stomach intensified again. "But the book doesn't say that."

"Trust me."

He stared into my eyes for what felt like a lifetime, and then he nodded his head and crushed the bean. The shock was clear in his voice when he exclaimed, "I did it."

Sirius cleared his throat and I broke away from James. "Actually, mate, you and _Evans_ did it."

I looked at Sirius. He now had a slight, satisfied smirk on his face to match the glint in his eye. I suddenly realized that Sirius was deliberately trying to force us together. He flicked his eyes at Gabby and I turned my gaze on her. She had stiff shoulders and her movements were jerky with anger. Even though I was secretly happy at her discomfort, I shook my head at Sirius and his smirk grew. The gall of that boy, really.

James, oblivious to mine and Sirius's exchange, asked, "What's next?"

"Just follow what the book says until you get to the stirring. You can call me over then."

I returned to my table, picked up the vile, and brought it up to Slughorn for grading. "My goodness, Miss Evans. Finished already?" He took my finished potion and declared to the entire class that I was the first to finish. The delight I got from seeing Gabby's murderous gaze made the embarrassment of the situation suddenly seem not so bad.

A few minutes after I finished cleaning up my area, James and Sirius called me over again. Their potion was a bit darker than it should have been, but it didn't seem too bad. "Okay, you do the seven stirs then another in the opposite direction." When James began to stir clockwise, I snatched the spoon from his hand. "Seriously? Don't you read? Is he always this bad," I asked Sirius.

Sirius gave me a bland look. "Sadly, yes."

James gave an indignant huff. "Of course I read. It says right here…oh."

"See what I mean," Sirius drawled. "He learns by doing, not by reading."

"Fine, I guess I'll have to show him then." I narrowed my eyes at Sirius again when the glint and the smirk reappeared.

I grabbed James's hand again, ignoring the butterflies this time. I showed him how to properly stir the potion. I told him that to make the potion correctly, you had to be very precise. The spoon had to go around the outer edges. When I looked up, his gaze quickly fell to the potion as if he'd been staring at me. He wasn't even paying attention! I couldn't simply ignore the fluttery feeling then. Sirius's smirk was bigger than ever as he looked back and forth between James and me. What a git.

After class, I went to the loo. I thought about the interest Sirius had taken in James and me. When did he become such a match maker? He was obviously trying to push us together. I wasn't quite sure how I felt about all of this yet. Fancying James was totally new to me. Besides, I had a crisis on my hands. My life had been high jacked and I had to fix it before I even considered pursuing a relationship with anyone.

I was washing my hands when Helen and Marlene walked in. Marlene was in one of her moods; I could tell by the angry way she held herself. I decided to ignore them. "You have some nerve, Evans. You know that they're dating."

"I'm sorry?"

She whipped me around to face her. Helen was standing a few meters away, wringing her hands in stress. "Don't pretend to be thick with me. I know what you're up to."

"I'm sorry, Marlene, but I don't—"

"Bullshit, you slag." I felt as if I'd been slapped. I'd never seen so much anger in her face. Well, that's not true. I'd never seen this anger directed at me before, but I had seen it used plenty of times, mostly on Slytherins. "I've noticed how you've been all over James lately, eating with him, sending him those pathetic and longing stares. But what you did in Potions today was crossing the line."

I closed my eyes briefly, cursing at Sirius. "I didn't mean anything by it. I was just trying to help them, I swear."

"Don't lie." My heart picked up pace as Marlene took another step towards me. I thought for sure she would start swinging. "Gabby is one of my best mates. If you mess with her, you mess with me. Listen to me when I tell you to stay away from James. You don't want me for an enemy."

I nodded silently and looked away. When they left, I sighed heavily. I remembered how protective Marlene could be. She was such a good friend. I missed both her and Helen fiercely at that moment.

By the time I left the restroom, it was well into lunchtime. I made my way slowly to the Great Hall to eat something. I sat in my usual seat, but avoided all eye contact with the Gryffindor table. I gave up eating halfway through, losing my appetite. It didn't surprise me really when I heard his footsteps following out into the corridor.

"Lily, I need to—are you okay?" James's stare was filled with concern when he caught up with me.

I continued to avoid making eye contact with him. "I'm fine. You needed something?"

"Er, yes. I won't be able to make it to the Room tonight. I have Quidditch practice after supper."

"That's fine. You really don't have to help me anymore if you don't want." Marlene was right; I really didn't want her for an enemy. Maybe if I pushed him away, I could avoid just that. Besides this attraction I held for him was steadily becoming a distraction from finding the counter spell.

"No, I want to keep helping you, but I just think that I'll be too tired after practice." I just nodded. He grabbed my shoulders and I finally looked him in the eye. Big mistake. My insides twisted, but unlike earlier, it wasn't a happy feeling. "Are you sure you're okay?"

I gave him a small smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired, I guess."

"Okay, well I'll see you later, then?" The worry was still there in his expression.

"Yeah, have a good practice." I walked away, already missing him.

**Author's Note: See, what did I tell you? I hope this made up for the last chapter being so short. There is more drama to come. Hopefully I'll be able to write it all out soon, but I've been so busy with school and work that I can't make any promises. I'd love to hear what you thought of this chapter (or my story in general, so far), even if you need to provide some constructive criticism. Thanks!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

**Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction based off of a work of fiction written by the lovely J.K. Rowling. I am simply inspired by her novels to make this fanfic.**

That night found me in the Room of Requirement searching through countless books. Well, to be honest, I was mostly thinking about the situation with James and using the research as a distraction. He was definitely a detriment to figuring this whole mess out because my mind kept focusing on him rather than the books in front of me.

I tried to think of a way to continue my friendship with James while staying on Marlene's good side. Her best subject had always been Charms. I'd seen her cast many hexes when she was prompted into a fit of rage. She could be downright scary.

Unfortunately for me, I could see no other way around the problem. The only two solutions that I could come up with was that James and I would have to continue our friendship in secret or I would have to make him hate me. I didn't think he would fancy the former too much and it would just get too complicated. That meant that I would have to make him hate me and want to stay away if I didn't want to incur Marlene's wrath.

I left the Room of Requirement around midnight. I didn't think anything was going to be accomplished with the mood I was in and I didn't feel like spending another night on the moldy sofa. Confident that no one was awake, I strode towards the Hufflepuff common room. Big mistake on my part, really, because I somehow forgot about the prefects.

Just as I was rounding the corner to the kitchens, I bumped straight into Remus. "Lily? What are you doing out past curfew?"

"Sorry, Remus. I…I fell asleep in the stacks in library. I must have slipped past Madame Pince's notice," I lied as smoothly as I could.

He met my overly innocent expression with narrowed eyes. "Uh-huh. Is, er, is there anyone with you?" Remus looked over my shoulder.

"No, why would anyone be with me?"

"It's just my mates and I were thinking—" He cut himself off and I narrowed my eyes at him. "Never mind. Why don't you get to bed? And take care to not fall asleep in the library again. I don't want to have to give you a detention." He smiled to turn the threat into a joke of sorts.

"Sure, Remus, thanks. And sorry."

I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow. To say that I slept like the dead would be putting it lightly. I hadn't actually been devoting enough time to my slumber as of late. When I awoke, my stomach was aflutter with anxiety and sadness. Today, my new friendship with James was going to end.

The whole day, instead of just getting it over with, I played the coward. I took all precautions to avoid James and somehow managed to accomplish that feat. Or so I thought. After supper, I was one of the last people to leave so I could ensure a James-free walk to the Hufflepuff dorms. I was halfway there when I felt a hand encircle my upper arm. I whirled around, ready to hex whoever it was until I saw that it was James. He'd jumped back from me and his eyebrows were raised in amused surprise. "Are you going to use that on me, Evans?"

"No, of course not. You just scared me." I tried to conjure up all of the old resentment and anger I used to feel for him. It was harder than I'd anticipated to seem stony and uninterested when he was mere meters away. My insides were in turmoil and it made me feel shaky all over. "Did you want something?"

He cocked his head to the side at my attitude. "Are you alright?"

"Of course."

"Then why won't you look at me?" I met his gaze sarcastically and he frowned at me. "Did I say or do something to offend you? Why are avoiding me?"

I sighed wearily. "I'm not avoiding you, Potter." Calling him by his surname made things easier. I was able to inject just the right amount of annoyance into my voice. Just like old times. "What do you want?"

"I wanted to know when you were heading to the Room tonight."

"I don't think that I'm doing that anymore."

James narrowed his eyes at me. "What do you mean?"

"I've decided that I can just deal with it. I'm starting to think that there's no way to change things back, so I'm not going to look through any more books." This, of course, was all a lie. I needed to push James away and I couldn't have him helping me anymore. It was too hard to be around him and not want him more and more. Oh, and the whole Marlene issue was a problem too.

"You're giving up," he asked incredulously.

"In a way, yes."

"I don't understand. I thought this was important to you." He searched my face. "I don't believe you."

I had to get him to hate me; to want to stay as far away from me as possible. An idea struck me then. I didn't like that I had to resort to these kinds of lies, but it would definitely make him hate me. "Fine. Do you want to know the truth, Potter? I-I lied to you. All I said to you about this alternate universe stuff was made up."

His face screwed up in confusion. "What? Why?"

What would make him believe this lie? I thought fast. "I can't stand Gabby. I thought that this was the perfect opportunity to screw her over and make her jealous of me. I'm sorry that I had to use you, but it was the only way."

"That makes no sense. Why are you telling me this if that's what you wanted?"

I swallowed. "Because I give up. Gabby has you wrapped so tightly around her little finger that you're of no use to me. I don't need to mess with your head any more than I already have."

I saw the hurt on James's face before he replaced it with anger. His jaw clenched and his hands balled up into fists. "That was…I can't—I…I don't even think that I have the words for…bloody hell! Do you even know how that makes me feel? I feel like an absolute prat, that's what. You must have had a real laugh at me when I started to believe you." James got up really close to my face and snarled, "Don't ever talk to me again or I swear I'll—I'll…" He growled then turned from me and stormed off in the opposite direction.

I breathed in deeply and slowly let it out in a shaky breath. I closed my eyes and willed the tears to recede. I couldn't believe that I had done it. Hopefully he would stay angry at me until I figured this whole mess out. Then, after everything went back to normal, I vowed to make things right between us. If anything good came from this experience it was the fact that I finally got to see who James really was. I wasn't willing to give up on whatever had developed between us no matter what I had to go through. After a few more minutes of collecting myself in the dark corridor, I made my way to the Room of Requirement alone.

I rubbed my tired eyes and reread the same passage for the fifth time. I was so tired that comprehension of words had become impossible. It was well past midnight and I was sitting on the moldy couch again. I turned my burning, heavy eyes to the books that I hadn't gone through yet. Before starting my research that night, I'd looked for any books that could be applied to my situation in any way. There were three stacks of them that all came up to my hip each. I'd only gotten through about half of the first stack that night to no avail.

I was starting to think that I was right when I'd told James that I had made this entire thing up. Perhaps I was really going mad and it only felt real. I mean, wasn't that the rule? Crazy people didn't think that they were crazy. Merlin, maybe I _should_ give up. This whole situation was pointless. At least I'd had some fun when James was helping me. Scratch that; I was having _a lot_ of fun with James.

But I did the right thing. He didn't have to waste time dealing with my problems. James was not only the Head Boy, but he was also the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, not to mention the amount of schoolwork he must have had by that point. When had he had time to focus on his studies since he started helping me? I most certainly did not have any time to do anything academic recently (besides show up Gabby in Potions, but that was easy because it was my best subject). No, I definitely did the right thing.

I lay back on the gross and extremely smelly couch intending to rest my eyes for a bit. I only realized that I'd fallen asleep when I awoke with a start. I wasn't sure how long I'd been asleep or what had awoken me so suddenly. I sat up and rubbed my eyes awake. Then I froze when I heard it: the door quietly clicked closed.

I looked around for my wand as soundlessly as I could. Then I spotted the end of it sticking out from under the couch. After arming myself, I hid behind the massive bookcase. My heart was beating loudly and my hands shook. I wasn't sure how accurate my aim would be unless I calmed myself down.

"Where is she," a familiar voice whispered. "She wasn't on the Map. Unless she snuck off to Hogsmede, this is the only place she'd be."

"She probably heard you crash into here and hid, you flat-footed dolt. Can't you ever be quiet," asked another familiar voice in quiet annoyance. This was followed by what sounded like a smack on the head.

"Padfoot, kindly do not slap Wormtail," a third voice admonished. "It's not his fault he's so clumsy."

I shook my head. I should have guessed that the only people that would be sneaking about the castle this late were the Marauders. I severely hoped that James was not with them. To be sure, I peeked around the side of the bookshelf and let out a relieved sigh when I just saw Remus, Sirius and Peter. They were carefully looking behind things for me.

Still holding my wand high, I stepped from my hiding spot. James must have told them what I'd said and they were bound to be angry with me. "What do you lot want?"

They turned to me, startled. Then, Sirius said with an eye roll, "Told you she heard you, Wormtail. Now, love, why don't you lower that wand of yours so we can have a talk?"

I hesitated. It wasn't as if they'd ever been known to hex non-Slytherins unawares. The look on Sirius's face however, made me reluctant to test this theory. He had an undercurrent of anger that was masked by his usual smirking amusement. "Fine," I said. I lowered my wand but kept it tightly gripped in my hand. "What do you want to talk about?"

"You know what." Sirius dropped the pretense of amusement. "Why did you do it?"

"I don't know what you mean."

This was clearly the wrong thing to say. Sirius narrowed his eyes and looked even angrier; Remus and Peter looked on in distaste. "Rubbish. Don't play games with me, you chit. You know exactly what I'm talking about." When I stayed silent, he continued to talk. "Fine, allow me to elaborate, then. Do you happen to recall telling my best mate some sort of bullshit story and making him feel like a complete idiot?" I tried to get a word in edgewise, but he wasn't finished berating me yet. "Who does that? Do you even realize how messed up what you did was? I don't think I've ever seen him so upset."

That last statement made me look away in shame. I was suddenly tired of this whole situation. I was tired of being so lonely. I was just tired. "I lied."

"I think that was already established, Evans, but thank—"

"No," I interrupted him with ferocity, "earlier tonight. What I told him earlier tonight about my…situation." I wasn't sure how much they knew, so I kept it vague. "I lied to him when I told him that I made the whole story up."

All three of them looked at me in varying degrees of distrust. Sirius had a severe expression while Remus seemed more convincible. Peter looked between his two friends as if he couldn't decide whose expression to adopt and ended up with one in the middle. Remus finally spoke after a short, uncomfortable silence. "Why?"

I sighed gustily. "It was Marlene. She threatened me after Potions. She was angry about how familiar I seemed with James." I thought about that for a second then turned on Sirius. "Which is actually part of _your_ fault, by the way. Thank you for that. I thought she was going to pummel me. I decided to push James away so I wouldn't find myself on the wrong side of her wand."

"I think you accomplished that," Sirius remarked dryly. He looked heavenward and let out an angry breath. "Bloody Gabby. She ruins everything."

Remus was still watching me closely. "What exactly did you lie to James about—or, rather, not lie about? He didn't tell us the whole situation."

I wasn't sure how much I wanted to tell them. They might not even believe me and think that I was lying to them too. Or crazy. Then I thought, _Why the hell not tell them everything?_ It wasn't as if I had anything to lose. It might even make me feel less tired. "Gabby did something. I don't know what exactly but she switched everything. I'm supposed to be her and she's supposed to be me." The Marauders just blinked at me. "Like, she stole my life. I'm supposed to be the Gryffindor and Head Girl and top of our class, not her. She did some kind of spell or something and stole everything from me, even my friends. I've been researching and looking for any answers." I plopped down on the moldy couch again and cradled my tired head in my hands. "That's why James found me after curfew by the library last week. I told him everything on a longshot and he's been helping me research ever since."

"Did you tell him about Gabby," Remus asked.

I looked at him incredulously. "Of course, but she has James so blind that he thinks she has no flaws. To him, she can do no wrong."

Sirius shook his head. "She's sickening. I can't stand that…that…"

Peter patted Sirius on the back. "I know, mate. I know."

"So," I began tentatively. "Does this mean that you believe me?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes in thought. "It's a possibility."

"What were your theories," Remus asked.

"Parallel universe? I don't know. I've been searching for days, but there's nothing."

Remus rubbed his chin in thought. "Then it must be something else."

"Like what," I asked in an annoyed voice. The frustration was building up in my chest and made me want to scream.

Remus shrugged. "A memory charm, pehaps?"

A memory charm. I hadn't even considered that a possibility. "On the whole school though?" She must have some major power to be able to cast it on all of Hogwarts, even the professors were affected. "You know, that's actually a good suggestion. She is brilliant at Charms." I looked up in wonder as the pieces all clicked. "Remus, you are a genius. That's kind of perfect."

Remus looked flattered. "Just trying to help."

He took a look at the books stacked up, and picked one out. When he opened it, I asked, "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like? I'm researching."

Sirius shrugged and picked up a book, and Peter scrambled after him. A wave of affection overcame me for the three Marauders. I didn't, however, want them to feel like they were obligated to help me now. "You—you don't have to do that. I can handle this on my own."

Sirius looked at me pityingly. "Give it up, Evans. We're helping you now whether you like it or not. Plus, there's the added bonus of getting rid of Gabby."

I smiled beatifically at the three of them and felt more awake than I'd felt moments before. Things might have actually started to go my way now.

**Author's Note: Okay, like I said in my last chapter's update, I'm really, really sorry for taking so long. I was going through some personal stuff and just recently started writing again. Things are heating up and more drama is on the way. I hope that you enjoyed this chapter! What do you think of the fight between James and Lily? What about Remus's idea about how Lily was switched with Gabby? Tell me what you think in the comments, please!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the world of Harry Potter. I have created this story based off of J.K. Rowling's wonderfully written series.**

I woke up feeling uncomfortable and smelling mold, which was actually starting to become familiar to me. I'd fallen asleep on the bloody couch in the Room of Requirement again after a long night of research. What wasn't familiar was the fact that there were three other people in the room with me.

Sirius was lying on his stomach on top of the plushy rug he'd found rolled up behind a cabinet. His head was resting on an open book and it being promptly ruined by the trail of drool leaking from the corner of his mouth. Peter was lying a few meters from him on the bare floor. He was curled into a ball and his body twitched every now and then. Remus was the closest to me. He was on his back and his mouth was open as he lightly snored.

Remus was actually a very good-looking bloke. He had tawny hair that swept his forehead and big gentle eyes that always smiled despite how tired they looked at times. Remus' face had a few scars here and there, but I knew this was because of the lycanthropy. I felt bad for Remus. It couldn't have been easy to turn into a werewolf every month and hide that from everyone.

It was a shame that not many girls fancied the shy boy. It was James and Sirius who most girls paid attention to. Remus (and especially Peter) seemed to fall in the background of the group. Sirius was the Marauder who gained the highest amount of flirtatious looks. The mischief in his grey eyes had captured the devotion of many of Hogwarts' female population. James was also known to be mischievous, but girls mostly seemed to fall for his arrogant pratheadedness. Personally, I didn't understand that; I'd fallen for the kindness in him.

Remus was different. While he was like James in the kind way he treated others, he was more straitlaced than both James and Sirius. He was a stickler for the rules, which I respected. I was happy to have the three Marauders in on my secret.

We stayed up late last night and really got some good ideas. After Remus suggested a memory spell, we delved into the other possibilities and decided that it was some type of memory spell/potion combination. Gabby couldn't have put a spell on the whole school, since that was near impossible. Sirius was the one who suggested that she may have put a memory potion into the food for the whole school, and used a spell for those closest to me to make the memory alteration stronger.

We were stumped as to how Gabby managed to keep me from eating the poisoned food, when I remembered that I didn't have supper that night. A first year had asked me to tutor him that night, so I skipped eating to help him. I thought he'd been rather twitchy and nervous as I went over the basics with him. We decided to interrogate the boy just in case Gabby had paid him off. Perhaps we could get some information out of him.

"Morning, Lily." My thoughts were interrupted by Remus' sleepy voice.

"Morning. How'd you sleep?"

"Horribly, and yourself?"

I laughed quietly. "I'm pretty sure I smell like spoiled food. I really hate this couch."

"You do kind of smell, but I wasn't going to mention it to be polite and all."

I laughed again before lapsing into silence. Thinking about James made me miss him. "Oh, Remus, what am I going to do about James?"

"I don't know. He was really upset last night."

"I know," I replied miserably, as I sat up and rubbed my face with my hands. "I didn't want to hurt him, but I had to push him away somehow. You didn't see Marlene. She was right scary when she threatened me."

"So, Marlene and Alice used to be your mates right?"

"Yeah, but I'm not mad at Marlene. She was just trying to be a good friend. She would do the same for me, you know, if we were still friends."

"Okay, let me get this straight, if Gabby swapped lives with you, were you and James dating?"

"No," I said. Remus smiled at me slyly. "What?"

"Do you fancy him, then?"

I looked away quickly, but I couldn't hide the hideous blush on my cheeks. "No, I don't. He's just a friend." Remus didn't look convinced. "Really."

"Oh, come off it, Lily. Just admit it. The way you just denied it said so much. Besides, I'm pretty sure he fancies you. Well, at least he did before last night."

I debated silently for a few seconds before giving in. I decided that since I let them in on the whole Gabby situation, why not this too? "Oh, fine. Yes, I fancy James. Are you happy?"

"Finally she admits it," said Sirius as he sat up with a crooked grin on his face. He wiped his chin clear of drool. Why didn't it surprise me that he'd been eavesdropping?

"Oh great, Sirius is awake," I uttered dryly.

"Why, Evans, I'm hurt. Usually I don't have to deal with such biting sarcasm after sleeping with a girl."

"Hardy, har, har. Good thing we just slept in the same room."

"Come on, Evans, you know you've thought about shagging me at least once."

I laughed at the absurdity of that statement. Sure, I recognized that Sirius was attractive, but I'd never gone further than that. "Don't make me sick."

Sirius pursed his lips, trying to hide a smile. "I'm going to let that go since I know it's my best mate that you really want to shag."

"Is it always like this with him?" I asked Remus.

"I'm afraid so."

"Must be tiring."

"Immensely."

"Hey," Sirius interrupted us, "I am sitting right here, you know. It's rude to talk about someone behind their back."

"Good thing we're doing it in front of you then, right?"

Sirius narrowed his eyes at me and we all burst out laughing. Peter jolted awake at the sudden sound and looked around at us with bleary eyes. "Wha—what's going on? What'd I miss?"

Peter's cluelessness just made us laugh even harder until we could hardly catch our breath. It was then that I realized that I wanted this was another relationship that would change when I reversed things back to normal. Not only would I fight for James to be in my life, I would try my damnedest to keep the rest of the Marauders as friends, too.

I shifted in my seat uncomfortably. James was attempting to ignore me while at the same time was casting suspicious glares between his friends and me. I wasn't sure what they told him after returning to their dormitory this morning. When I asked him, Sirius enigmatically replied that they'd take care of it. I assumed that they were going to pretend that they were angry with me on behalf of James, but Sirius kept winking at me throughout breakfast. I really didn't understand him.

I was, once again, caught off guard when James cornered me after I slipped from the Great Hall. He dragged me into an empty broom closet. "What do you think you're playing at, Evans?"

I blinked up at him rapidly. My mind went blank due to sensory overload at his close proximity. James smelled so good and his lips were so near my own. That's when it hit me how much I really missed him. After that row we'd had, I assumed it would be the last encounter I would have with him for a while. Having him so close so soon threw me off. That's probably why I started to lean closer to him.

Then I stopped myself because I noticed the angry line to James' lips. Was I really just about to kiss him? Horrified at my lack of self-control, I tried to focus on what he was saying. "What?"

He exhaled angrily. "What the bloody hell do you think you're doing?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Have you decided to continue screwing with my life?"

"No, I—"

"Then what have you done to my mates?" he asked vehemently, cutting me off.

"What?"

"We're going to be here an eternity if you're going to continue acting so daft."

"But I _am _daft." At his raised eyebrow, I amended myself. "You know what I mean. I really have no idea what you're talking about."

"Padfoot—I mean, Sirius—kept blathering on and on this morning about how you're really not that bad and he didn't know why I was so angry with you. He even told me that you lot spent the evening in the Room researching! What have you done to my mates? Have you started distorting their brains with your lies as well? Thought you'd have a good laugh?"

Bloody Sirius. He said he'd take care James's questions, the wanker. James bombarding me with questions didn't seem like Sirius had taken care of it at all. "No, James," I said in anguish. "They found me in the Room, and yelled at me. I told them that I wasn't going to bother you anymore…and that I was sorry. I didn't ask them to stay. They just did."

James looked at me skeptically. His hazel eyes behind his glasses considered me. I looked at the floor. James' stare was unnerving. "Look at me, Lily," he said softly. I shook my head. "Please?"

I shook my head again. If he looked into my eyes now, I was sure that he'd see how much I wanted him. A pang shot through my chest when one of James' knuckles gently lifted my chin. The expression in his eyes had changed to something I couldn't quite recognize.

"Were you lying to me last night when you said that you were only using me to get to Gabby?"

_Yes! Yes! Yes!_ The word was on the tip of my tongue. I had to fight to keep from spilling out of my mouth. "No. No, I wasn't lying." The words tasted foul as I forced them out. "I was in the Room because…well, because I have no friends, James. How else am I supposed to pass the time? Studying is only interesting for so long."

James looked disappointed before it turned back to the skeptical look. "So, Marlene didn't threaten you in the loos yesterday?"

"How did you know that?" I asked in shock before I could contain myself.

He smiled. "I have my ways."

"Sirius," I said on a sigh. Of course. I closed my eyes as I imagined all of the hexes I'd throw at him when I'd gotten the chance.

"Best mates tell each other everything," James said with a shrug. "Why did you lie to me, Lils?"

"Have you met Marlene? Do you realize how scary she can be?" I asked, realizing that I'd just admitted it to lying about everything.

James took a step closer, making my heart jump in my chest when he cupped my face in his hands. He was smiling slightly. "Don't worry about Marlene. I have a plan." His head dipped closer to mine and I found it suddenly hard to breathe.

Just before James' lips touched mine, however, the door flew open. James and I leapt apart to opposite sides of the tiny cupboard. "Did he tell you the plan yet?" asked a bright, cheerful voice. The bloody wanker.

Three guesses who it was, and the first two don't count.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

**Disclaimer: I am not, nor will I ever be, J.K. Rowling. That would simply be impossible. So, because of this, the work of fiction I have created here is based off of her Harry Potter series and characters within this universe. I may have made up my own plot and a few characters, but everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling.**

"Did you tell her the plan yet?" Sirius asked James since I did not respond to his first question. I was still trying to get over the fact that _James Potter _almost_ kissed _me. It was quite jarring.

"No, Padfoot, I have not had the chance to, but I thank you kindly for the most unwelcome interruption."

Sirius looked between us and his eyes grew large. "Were you—"

"What plan?" I interrupted him. I wasn't sure I wanted to get into this conversation just yet because I didn't even know what it meant. Plus, Sirius was not going to be a part of it if I could help it.

He looked at me as if I were incredibly stupid. "The plan to get rid of Gabby."

My eyes shot to James. I was sure he was about to yell at Sirius for once again putting down his girlfriend, but James just nodded at me. "You want to get rid of Gabby?"

"That's the general idea," James said.

"Why did you just spend the last five minutes yelling at me, then?"

"I wanted to make sure you were telling the truth."

"And?" I was curious as to what James would say considering half of what I'd just told him was a lie. I was also kind of annoyed that he did that to me until I remembered how mean I'd been to him the day before. I'd done it for completely honorable reasons, of course, but it was still mean.

"You're an incredibly horrid liar, Lily."

"I am not!" I said, aghast.

"Well, I guess you can be good when you're prepared, but not when you're caught off guard. That's why I dragged you in here."

My reply dripped with sarcasm. "Huh. How intuitive of you."

"Actually," Sirius interrupted, "the broom cupboard was my idea. I mean, I guess Prongs came up with the whole catching-you-off-guard-thing, but I thought this would be the best space. You're less likely to hex anyone in here."

If looks could kill, Sirius would have been on the floor with the glare I sent his way just then. He widened his eyes as he attempted to look innocent. "What? Just making sure the general population of Hogwarts stays safe."

James sighed. "Shut up, Padfoot, before she actually murders you."

"So," I said, slowly taking my eyes off of Sirius to make sure he felt a lasting impression, "what does this plan entail?"

"We're still in the pre-planning stage right now," James told me. I reckoned they had a whole system for making plans by this point. The Marauders were nothing if not famous for their carefully calculated pranks. "For the moment, I'm going to continue to pretend I'm dating Gabby."

As much as I hated to admit it, James dating Gabby did seem like a good idea, so I nodded. "We need to keep you on her good side for now. No telling what she would do if she knew what we were up to." Gabby had become a sort of manipulative, dangerous, and downright scary girl in my mind over the past few weeks. The power she had to confound an entire school still amazed me. But, you know, not in a good way.

James, Sirius, and I decided we'd discuss this further the next night in the Room since James had Quidditch practice that night. As we parted ways to our respective classes, a budding excitement started in my gut. Not only was I able to be back on James' good side, but also Gabby—and more importantly, Marlene—would continue assuming that James no longer wanted anything to do with me.

Oh, how naïve I could truly be sometimes.

I was in a somewhat pleasant mood at the end of classes that day. I usually hated walking through the corridors when they were so crowded, but the conversation with James and Sirius earlier made me not really notice the other students' bodies bumping against mine. It was as I was on my way to the library for a bit of free time that my books exploded from my hands. I looked down at my hands in wonder for a few seconds completely dumbfounded.

"Thought you could be sneaky about it, did you, Evans?" Marlene's voice hissed very close to my ear. I whipped around to see her standing too close for comfort with her wand gripped tightly in her hand. Gabby was leaning up against a wall across the corridor with a wicked sneer on her face.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, come on. We saw James follow you out of the Great Hall earlier this morning. What did you two talk about?"

"Nothing. We…we had another row is all. I was rather nasty to him the other night and he was just getting back at me."

Marlene rolled her eyes. "Please. Am I supposed to believe that?"

"Believe what you want, but that's the truth."

"Right," she scoffed. I noticed that the other students stopped walking around us and were beginning to watch. Great. An audience. "And what about the rest of the Marauders? Sirius seemed rather chummy with you this morning at breakfast."

I sighed. "What does Gabby lay claim on them too? Is she dating all four of the Marauders now?"

Marlene pointed at me with her wand. "Watch it, Evans. You know perfectly well what I mean."

"Actually, no, I don't. I can be friends with whoever I bloody well want."

"I'm warning you," Marlene growled, but I cut her off.

"Oh, come off it, Marlene! This is stupid. You can't dictate who I can and cannot be friends with. You can threaten me all you want with your bloody wand, but we both know that Charms isn't your best subject." As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I regretted them. Marlene's eyes widened before they shrunk into slits. A collective gasp went throughout the crowd around us. She always hated being reminded that she was barely passing Charms.

"No, Marlene, I'm sorry, okay?" I said as I backed away from her. I had both of my palms up and facing her. I knew that if she did try to jinx me, I could best her, but I really didn't want to resort to that. "Please, just put your wand down."

"Fat chance of that happening." She struck my abdomen with a stinging jinx. It was one of her better ones, unfortunately, and I flew back against the wall from the force of it.

I clutched at my stomach. "Marlene, please. Stop."

Marlene, of course, just ignored my plight and hit me again with the stinging jinx. This time it was in my shoulder. I hadn't deflected it because I really didn't expect her to hit me again. Marlene had a bit of a temper, but she wasn't cruel. Tears stung my eyes. I happened to look over at Gabby and the look on her face made me sick. She was really enjoying this.

I took out my wand and easily deflected her next jinx. Now, I was pissed. "Marlene, stop it." She struck again and I blocked it once more. "Marlene! I'm serious. What is wrong with you?"

She raised her wand yet again, but didn't get to finish using it. "Miss Evans! Miss McKinnon! Lower your wands immediately," Professor McGonagall's voice boomed. I dropped my arm instantly. Marlene's angered expression didn't change but she thankfully put her hand down. "The both of you will meet me in my office. Now. The rest of you, move along."

As my former best friend and I shuffled off to McGonagall's office, I caught eyes with James. He was frowning deeply, but gave me a sympathetic look. He knew how harsh McGonagall's punishments could be. I was undoubtedly looking at a detention in my near future.

As it turned out, I was in fact assigned detention as was expected. McGonagall sentenced me to a night of manually polishing the silver trophies without the aid of magic. The detention she gave Marlene was much worse since she was the aggressor.

After McGonagall scolded us on the behavior that is expected of each and every Hogwarts student, I went to the trophy room as Marlene headed to the Hospital Wing to clean out the bedpans. I tried not to smirk at her before we separated. I mean, it wasn't her fault that she forgot we were friends.

It took me about an hour to get through one shelf of trophies, and there were five total. I tried to make them as clean as possible, but I feared that it was fighting a losing battle. It was as if these trophies were made to collect all sorts of rubbish and cling to it as much as possible.

"I wouldn't about trying to get the big one on the middle shelf too clean," James said from where he leaned against the doorway when I was on the third shelf later that night. "Padfoot tried to use magic on it in third year when he was assigned this same detention. McGonagall, of course, knew he'd attempt something like that and charmed all the trophies to get dirtier with magic. It was after his fifth attempt that he finally figured it out, the dolt. I'm not sure it'll ever clean properly."

"Thanks for the advice."

James came over to sit beside me on the floor and picked up a rag. "James, you don't have to help me. Besides, I thought you had practice."

"Practice ended ages ago. I was bored, so I came looking for you."

"So you could help me polish unpolishable silver? Wow, Potter, you really know how to have fun."

He laughed. "The polishing part might not be fun, but hanging around you isn't so bad."

I gave him a shy smile and looked down at the trophy in my hands as if I'd found a spot I was suddenly very interested in removing. Was James flirting with me?

"You know, there was something about watching your row with Marlene today. It seemed so familiar. Like, I knew exactly what expressions you'd be wearing because I'd seen them on your face a thousand times before. The weird thing is, aside from the other night, I don't remember ever fighting with you."

"But we have, James. That's what we do. We fight constantly." I turned to him wishing that I could somehow get through to him. This was such a huge part of both our lives. Maybe it would be just the thing to bring back his memories. "You say something in a very toerag-like manner, and I counter it with a nasty comment about your character. Or you ask me out, and then I say I'd rather be doing something unpleasant instead. Or you and your mates pull a prank, and I have to scold you about it."

"Merlin's beard, are we really always rowing?"

"Yes. Well," I amended, "at least we did before this year. I think becoming Head Boy matured you a bit or something. We haven't fought about too much lately."

James screwed up his face in concentration. "I can almost remember it. It feels like the memories are right there on the edge, and if I focus enough, I'll remember." We were silent as he thought, but then his shoulders sagged. "I can't. It's too hard. They keep escaping me."

I put my hand on his and gave him a sad smile. "It's okay. We'll find a way to fix it. No need to give yourself a nosebleed."

James' hand squeezed mine, and after a few minutes, I waited for him to pull away and change the subject. But he didn't. I felt the intensity rising between us. I couldn't help that my gaze kept dropping to his lips. We sat like that for I don't know how long. It was agonizing. It was amazing.

When James spoke next, his voice was slightly unsteady. "If it's okay with you, I'm going to kiss you now before Padfoot finds a way to interrupt us again."

I sucked in a shocked breath before nodding (a little too vigorously, if I'm being honest). James' hand brushed along my face so his fingers could thread through my hair. He pulled me forward until our mouths collided with each other.

It was a long kiss. All I could think was, _James Potter is kissing me. James Potter is KISSING me. James Potter is kissing ME._

As I was rambling on in my head, I hadn't noticed that James had stiffened. He pulled away slowly. I opened my eyes to find his wide and staring back at me. "Lily," he breathed. It was not, however, on a sigh of passion like one would expect. It was more like shock. "Lily, I remember."

"You…remember? How much?"

"Everything, Lils." James grabbed my face and kissed me briefly before saying, "I remember everything."

**Author's Note: FINALLY, right? James and Lily have finally kissed AND he's finally remembered everything. I'm going to try to get the next chapter up quickly. In the meantime, tell me what you think. What's going to happen with Marlene? What about Gabby? I would love to hear your guesses. Thanks for reading!**


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